Actor Alicia Witt’s parents both found dead in wellness check on their home

Police say there was no foul play but cause of death remains unclear

The parents of American actor and singer Alicia Witt have been found dead in their Worcester, Massachusetts residence without any clear cause of death.

Their death was confirmed by Ms Witt in a statement late on Monday. She said that she sent a relative to check on Robert Witt, 87, and Diane Witt, 75, as she had not heard back from them for several days.

“I reached out to a cousin who lives close to my parents to check on them. Sadly, the outcome was unimaginable,” she wrote. “I ask for some privacy at this time to grieve and to wrap my head around this turn of events, and this surreal loss.”

The police, who arrived after the relative called for assistance to check on the couple, said the parents were found dead inside the house and that there was no sign of foul play. However, the cause of death remains unclear.

“I can confirm that police were dispatched to the residence and discovered a male and a female deceased. There were no signs of foul play. It is under investigation,” Worcester police spokesperson Lt Sean Murtha said on Tuesday. Police were sent to the home shortly after 9pm on Monday.

Mr Murtha added that there was also no sign that the couple had faced any sort of trauma.

An autopsy will be carried out to ascertain the cause of death. Authorities have also checked the house to try to determine the cause of death.

The couple had lived in Worcester for decades, and the actor grew up in the city with her brother Ian.

According to the Worcester Telegram & Gazette, there had been reports that the elderly couple had been having issues with their furnace and had been using a space heater.

Worcester Fire Deputy Chief Adam Roche said that firefighters went to the residence to check on the air quality but that they found no noxious gases.

“There were no signs of carbon monoxide,” Chief Roche said.

A neighbour said that the couple had rarely been spotted outside and that she thought that they had been ill for a period of time.

The neighbour said that members of the community had been offering to help them with their home as its condition worsened, but that they had politely declined any help. She added that one neighbour had been mowing the grass and clearing snow from the property for a few years, the Telegram & Gazette reported.

Ms Witt began her career in the 80s as a child artist and came to fame with films such as Twin Peaks and Dune. She has appeared on TV, on Broadway and in many films while also continuing to sing and play the piano.

She had also taken part in Orange Is the New Black, Nashville, The Walking Dead, Two Weeks Notice, 88 Minutes and Mr Holland’s Opus.

Diane Witt appeared in the Guinness Book of World Records in the 1980s for her record-setting, ten-feet long hair, with her husband and children helping her maintain the locks that she wore in a braid on top of her head, according to reports at the time.

Robert Witt worked as a science teacher while his wife home-schooled their children, according to the Telegram & Gazette.